By Jerald Jimenez
May 1, 2024, 09:46 AM EDT
The pro-Palestinian protests that have spread across different university campuses in the country have now moved to the University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA), in Westwood, with clashes that included fights and throwing firecrackers at makeshift camps.
According to a report published by Fox 11, an unidentified person sprayed pepper spray into several people’s faces, sparking the altercation. Several firecrackers were thrown shortly afterwards against a barrier put up by the campus police, prompting several people to seek shelter.
However, despite the incidents between protesters on campus, it took law enforcement about three hours to respond. Campus law enforcement reportedly did not ask the Los Angeles Police Department (LAPD) for formal help until midnight, the New York Post reported.
The clashes began several hours after UCLA university officials declared the campus encampment illegal and warned protesters of possible sanctions if they did not leave campus, the Los Angeles Daily News reported.
“We can confirm that LAPD officers have been deployed and are currently on the UCLA campus to help restore order. “We are working in partnership with UCLA Police and other law enforcement agencies,” the department stated.
State officials condemned the incidents
“The violence unfolding tonight at UCLA is absolutely abhorrent and inexcusable,” declared Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass on her X account, formerly Twitter, noting that she was in Washington DC on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, California Governor Gavin Newsom specified on Tuesday that authorities seek to maintain the right to protest at both UCLA and UC Berkeley, but without any hate, when asked about the protests during a press conference.
The UCLA Strategic Communications office issued a statement denouncing the “horrible acts of violence that occurred at the camp tonight,” and indicated that they immediately called authorities to ask for “mutual aid.” The office added that firefighters and medical personnel are already on campus, and that they are “disgusted by this senseless violence, which must end.”
With information from Los Angeles Daily News / FOX 11 / New York Post